I agree with Rayne wholeheartedly. I am VERY good at hiding my true feelings, especially around people I work with and socialize with. I guess I do it because a) I don't think most people would care about my issues even if they knew b)I like appearing stronger than I really am c) because I've always believed in the "fake it till you make it" philosophy - hoping if I ACT happy then eventually I will BE happy. Unfortunately, like Rayne said, hiding those feelings from everyone and myself ends up making the situation worse. When we camoflage our emotions, our sadness often comes across as something else- we get meaner, colder, irritable, indifferent..and treat people accordingly. How are others supposed to know how to respond to us if what we are showing them isn't what we are really feeling? I have only just begun to understand that alot of the reason people don't respond to me the way I need them to is largely my own fault - I can't expect people to read my mind. Maybe if we were more open about our fears instead of worrying about appearing weak, we'd find that others are going throught the same thing and would be more than happy to help.
